Hand pad

ABSTRACT

A Hand Pad comprising a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb is provided. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad is used to protect the meaty pad of the palm. The Hand Pad is further configured to slip on and could be secured using a regular sports glove (batting glove, receiver&#39;s glove or baseball catcher&#39;s mitt). It is to be noted that the Hand Pad can further comprise a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb. In the depicted embodiment, the material could be a spongy gel that would absorb and displace a blow to the palm.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO OTHER APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/167,816 filed Mar. 30, 2021, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present invention generally relates to a Hand Pad comprising a layer of protective gel and designed to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of a hand typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Injuries are very common in both contact sports and noncontact sports as well as in certain kinds of tool-intensive manual labor. In the field of sports, athletes employ various types of gloves and protective devices to prevent injuries. However, currently available protection devices—sports gloves—are primarily directed to enhance the athlete's performance and not necessarily to provide protection. Even if such sports gloves can provide a certain measure of protection, the balance between performance and protection can vary from sport to sport as well as from position to position within a single sport—thereby creating a challenge to provide enhanced functionality of performance while providing adequate protection.

The art of catching a baseball, basketball or football has long been well known for needing a protective covering to be worn over the hand. For example, football players are always at risk of injuring their hands and fingers because of the great deal of pressure and strain that is put on them while competing. Similarly, the speed at which a baseball travels when either thrown or hit, combined with the ball's weight and solidity, presents significant risks of injury to the catcher's hand. Athletes therefore need protective equipment or pad that is able to provide support, functionality and a natural feel on the hand while not inhibiting performance. However, currently available gloves and other protective devices seem to sacrifice one characteristic for the other.

Numerous attempts have been made to mitigate these risks of injury to the catching hand, but none are deemed fully satisfactory. The scarcity of effective options is more prevalent when it comes to the market for Hand Pads. Prior art fails to provide more than an extremely marginal amount of protective padding over the parts of the hand that most directly absorb the force of incoming balls. It is well known in the field of sports medicine that ball catchers frequently suffer from related “subjective hand symptoms,” such as weakness in the catching hand due to excessive injuries to certain portions of their hands.

One of the other key drawbacks with conventional protective devices and gloves are that they end up covering the entire hand thereby reducing the feel and restricting freedom of movement for the entire hand, including all five fingers. This is particularly disadvantageous from the athlete's perspective of having the ability to substantially and precisely feel the inner surfaces and movements of the outer glove, which is vital to the ability to successfully catch a fast-moving baseball, which requires high degrees of dexterity, skill and precision while also requiring speed and strength.

The problem with hand injuries is not limited to sports. In manual labor and operations, there is also a dearth of protective devices that can used by the operator while on the job. In most manual labor jobs, the thumb region of the hand typically encounters a certain amount of shock and pressure when grasping and operating tools. For example, performing continual repetitious motions and localized pressure within certain regions of the hand can lead to musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) such as carpal tunnel and tendonitis. For example, a protective glove can be used for absorbing slight knocks.

Currently available protective devices—pads and gloves—disadvantageously restrict the desired element of hand freedom, while also failing to provide any significant protective padding to any part of the hand, including the most crucially vulnerable part. Even if these protective devices are meant to protect the user's hands, they lack the flexibility and grip that a better designed protective device may provide.

Therefore, there is a market need for protective devices to protect the user's hand, specifically a user's thumb and the meaty pad of their hand to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of the hand typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor.

The present invention is directed to a novel and improved Hand Pad protective device comprising a layer of protective gel and designed to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of a hand typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor.

SUMMARY

Embodiments disclosed in the present invention provide a novel and improved Hand Pad protective device that may be used for various purposes.

A Hand Pad protective device comprising a layer of protective gel that could be slipped on over the lower portion of a user's thumb and the meaty pad of a user's hand to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb shocks that the thumb region of the hand typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor is provided. The Hand Pad can be used for absorbing any shock received when using a tool or equipment gripped by the user's hand while performing certain kind of manual jobs. The Hand Pad can be manufactured from a flexible silicone material configured to provide enough flexibility for turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb of a user. It is to be noted that the flexibility of the Hand Pad material is key for using the same Hand Pad for both the left hand thumb and the right hand thumb.

A Hand Pad protective device comprising a layer of protective gel used to protect the meaty pad of the palm is provided, wherein the Hand Pad is designed and configured to slip on and secure over the thumb of the user. In the depicted embodiment, the use of a sport glove over the Hand Pad will further secure the Hand Pad protective device and create a more “natural-feel” of the Hand Pad upon the hand of the user.

In an embodiment, a Hand Pad is designed and configured as a “SKILL” model wherein the Hand Pad is primarily geared towards skill position players and other similar usages. By way of example and not of limitation, in the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad can be made of red or other colors from various types of silicone and other similar material available in the marketplace.

In an embodiment, a Hand Pad is designed and configured as a “POWER” model wherein the Hand Pad comprises of a material with a certain thickness (thicker than the material used in the “SKILL” model) and usage primarily geared toward linemen and/or baseball catchers and other high impact usages. By way of example and not of limitation, in the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad can be made of black or other colors from various types of silicone and other similar material available in the marketplace.

The Hand Pad disclosed herein can be used with any regular sports glove. It is to be noted that the Hand Pad can further comprise a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb. By way of example and not of limitation, the flexible material can be spongy gel or any other material having equivalent characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.

It is to be noted that the Hand Pad comprising at least a layer of protective gel is further designed and configured to slip on and secured and can be worn underneath any regular gloves including, but not limited to gloves such as a batting glove, catcher's mitt or receiver's glove or other protective hand gloves used for manual labor.

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described in the detailed description of the invention. This summary is not intended to identify key or essential inventive concepts of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended for determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Certain embodiments are shown in the drawings. However, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the arrangements and instrumentality shown in the attached drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an embodiment of a Hand Pad comprising a layer of protective gel that could be slipped on over the lower portion of a user's thumb and the meaty pad of their hand to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of the hand typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are side views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are top views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are bottom views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

For the purposes of promoting and understanding the principles disclosed herein, reference is now made to the preferred embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language is used to describe the same.

It is understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is hereby intended. Such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated apparatus and such further applications of the principles disclosed and illustrated herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention relates.

In an embodiment, a Hand Pad protective device comprising a layer of protective gel used to protect the meaty pad of the palm is provided, wherein the Hand Pad is designed and configured to slip on and secure over the thumb of the user. In the depicted embodiment, the use of a sport glove over the Hand Pad will further secure the Hand Pad protective device and create a more “natural feel” of the Hand Pad upon the hand of the user.

In another embodiment, the Hand Pad can be used with any regular sports glove. It is to be noted that the Hand Pad can further comprise a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb. By way of example and not of limitation, the flexible material can be spongy gel or any other material having equivalent characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.

In yet another embodiment, a Hand Pad comprising at least a layer of protective gel and that could be slipped on over the lower portion of a user's thumb and the meaty pad of their hand to provide protection (e.g., for offensive linemen or catchers) is provided. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad comprises a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad is used to protect the meaty pad of the palm. By way of example and not of limitation, the Hand Pad is further configured to slip on and could be secured using a regular sports glove (batting glove, receiver's glove or baseball catcher's mitt). The Hand Pad could be worn underneath another sports glove, such as a catcher's mitt or a receiver's glove.

In yet another embodiment, a Hand Pad is further designed to protect the base of the thumb, wherein the Hand Pad is designed to extend over and circumferentially cover the muscular base of the thumb. It is to be noted that the innovative Hand Pad is designed and configured to protect the surface area of the base of the thumb, extending to the connected muscular base of the palm, primarily the surface area of the hand that is a high contact zone for injuries. By way of example and not of limitation, a Hand Pad is further designed and configured to contact the surface area of the hand—primarily the surface area of the hand that is a high contact zone with everyday implications in work related to manual labor (e.g., plumbing, hammering, nailing, etc.).

In yet another embodiment, a Hand Pad comprising at least a layer of protective gel and a flexible silicone material configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb is provided. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad is designed to protect a front zone, a side zone, and a top zone of a user's thumb, wherein the shape of the Hand Pad is configured to receive the thumb of the hand and allow manipulation of the thumb such that the thumb may be configured to receive an object during use of the Hand Pad.

In an embodiment, a Hand Pad is designed and configured as a “SKILL” model wherein the Hand Pad is primarily geared towards skill position players and other similar usages. By way of example and not of limitation, the Hand Pad can be made of red or other colors from various types of silicone and other similar material available in the marketplace.

In another embodiment, a Hand Pad is designed and configured as a “POWER” model wherein the Hand Pad comprises of a material with a certain thickness (thicker than the material used in the “SKILL” model) and usage primarily geared toward linemen and/or baseball catchers and other high impact usages. By way of example and not of limitation, the Hand Pad can be made of black or other colors from various types of silicone and other similar material available in the marketplace.

It is to be noted that the Hand Pad can be made of various colors from various types of silicone and other similar material available in the marketplace. In yet another embodiment, a Hand Pad is further designed to provide preventive protection for the covered area of the hand while dispersing any shocks or blows delivered to the covered area of the hand. By way of example and not of limitation, various types of silicone material can be used for the Hand Pad.

It is to be noted that various other applications of this Hand Pad are common. By way of example and not of limitation, an improved Hand Pad can dampen vibration and absorb shock transmitted from a power tool to a thumb region of a hand.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an embodiment of a Hand Pad 1000 comprising a layer of protective gel that could be slipped on over the lower portion of a user's thumb and the meaty pad of their hand 2000 to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of the hand 2000 typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, a Hand Pad 1000 comprising a layer of protective gel that could be slipped on over the lower portion of a thumb of a user's hand 2000 to provide protection and reduce sports injuries as well as absorb the shock that the thumb region of the hand 2000 typically encounters when grasping and operating tools for manual labor is provided.

In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad 1000 can be used to protect the meaty pad of the palm of a user's hand 2000. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad 1000 is further designed and configured to cover the surface area of the hand 2000—primarily the surface area of the hand that is a high contact zone with everyday implications in work related to manual labor (e.g., plumbing, hammering, nailing, etc.). As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, and by way of example and not of limitation, the Hand Pad 1000 is further configured to slip on and could be secured using a regular sports glove (batting glove, receiver's glove or baseball catcher's mitt). The Hand Pad could be worn underneath another sports glove, such as a catcher's mitt or a receiver's glove.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. In the depicted embodiment, a Hand Pad 1000 is designed and configured to provide flexibility of turning the Hand Pad 1000 inside out to fit either the left hand thumb or the right hand thumb of a user's hand 2000. In the depicted embodiment, the Hand Pad is used to protect the meaty pad of the palm of the user's hand 2000. As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the Hand Pad 1000 comprises a top edge 1004, a bottom edge 1002, an outer surface 1006 and an inner surface 1008 which is configured to cover the thumb of a user.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are side views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIGS. 7 and 8 are top views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIGS. 9 and 10 are bottom views of an embodiment of a Hand Pad depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. As further illustrated in FIGS. 5-10, a Hand Pad 1000 to protect the meaty pad of the palm of the user's hand 1000 is provided. The Hand Pad 1000 is further configured to slip on and could be secured using a regular sports glove (batting glove, receiver's glove or baseball catcher's mitt) 3000. In the depicted embodiment, the material could be a spongy gel that would absorb and displace a blow to the palm of the user's hand 2000.

The use of the terms “a,” “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) is to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.

It is understood that the preceding is merely a detailed description of some examples and embodiments of the present disclosure, and that numerous changes to the disclosed embodiments may be made in accordance with the disclosure made herein without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. The preceding description, therefore, is not meant to limit the scope of the disclosure, but to provide sufficient disclosure to allow one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the disclosure without undue burden. The scope of the present disclosure fully encompasses other embodiments that may become obvious to those skilled in the art. Features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used in another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present disclosure cover such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. It is to be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present discussion is a description of exemplary embodiments only, and is not intended as limiting the broader aspects of the present disclosure, which broader aspects are embodied in the exemplary constructions. 

1. A hand pad comprising: a flexible material having a shape configured to wear on a thumb of a user; wherein the flexible material further comprises at least one layer of a protective gel; and wherein the flexible material is configured to fit either a left hand thumb or a right hand thumb of a user.
 2. The hand pad of claim 1, wherein the flexible material is a silicone or other material having similar characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.
 3. The hand pad of claim 1, further configured to be slipped over the lower portion of the user's thumb to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is playing sports.
 4. The hand pad of claim 3, wherein the lower portion of the user's thumb comprises a meaty pad of the user's hand.
 5. The hand pad of claim 3, further configured to be slipped on over a regular sports glove.
 6. The hand pad of claim 5, wherein the regular sports glove can be a batting glove, receiver's glove or a catcher's mitt.
 7. The hand pad of claim 3, further configured as a skill model pad having a certain pre-determined thickness to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is a skill position player.
 8. The hand pad of claim 3, further configured as a power model pad having a certain pre-determined thickness to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is a high impact player.
 9. The hand pad of claim 7, wherein the user is a lineman or a baseball catcher.
 10. The hand pad of claim 8, wherein the predetermined thickness is greater than the thickness used in the skill model pad.
 11. The hand pad of claim 1, further configured to be slipped over the lower portion of the user's thumb to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is grasping a tool for a certain manual labor operation.
 12. The hand pad of claim 2, wherein the silicone can be made of various colors such as red, black or other types of colors based on usage.
 13. The hand pad of claim 1, wherein the flexible material is a spongy gel or any other material having equivalent characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.
 14. The hand pad of claim 1, further configured to extend over and circumferentially cover a muscular base of the user's thumb.
 15. The hand pad of claim 1, further configured to protect a front zone, a side zone and a top zone of the user's thumb.
 16. The hand pad of claim 1, further configured to allow manipulation of the user's thumb in order to receive an object during usage.
 17. A method of using a hand pad comprising: configuring and shaping a flexible material having at least one layer of a protective gel to wear on a thumb of a user; and securing the flexible material to fit either a left hand thumb or a right hand thumb of a user.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the flexible material is a silicone or other material having similar characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.
 19. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of configuring the hand pad to be slipped over the lower portion of the user's thumb to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is playing sports.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the lower portion of the user's thumb comprises a meaty pad of a user's hand.
 21. The method of claim 20, further comprising the steps of configuring a regular sports glove to be slipped over the hand pad.
 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the regular sports glove can be a batting glove, receiver's glove or a catcher's mitt.
 23. The method of claim 19, further comprising the steps of configuring the hand pad as a skill model pad having a certain pre-determined thickness to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is a skill position player.
 24. The method of claim 19, further comprising the steps of configuring the hand pad as a power model pad having a certain pre-determined thickness to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is a high impact player.
 25. The method of claim 24, wherein the user is a lineman or a baseball catcher.
 26. The method of claim 24, wherein the predetermined thickness is greater than the thickness used in the skill model pad.
 27. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of configuring the hand pad to be slipped over the lower portion of the user's thumb in order to provide protection and reduce injuries when the user is grasping a tool for certain manual labor operations.
 28. The method of claim 18, wherein the silicone can be made of various colors such as red, black or other types of colors based on usage.
 29. The method of claim 17, wherein the flexible material is a spongy gel or any other material having equivalent characteristics and functionality to provide protection by absorbing and displacing any shock to the palm of the user's hand.
 30. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of configuring and extending the hand pad to circumferentially cover a muscular base of the user's thumb.
 31. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of configuring the hand pad to protect a front zone, a side zone and a top zone of the user's thumb. 